Tagged: cfo of the year

Numbers come easily for Bill Harrison, who grew up in a family of accountants. A graduate of Harvard Business School, Harrison has presided over finances as CFO at Jonesboro’s E. Ritter & Co. since 2009.

Wendy Bush started work for Dyke Industries Inc. of Little Rock the month after she received her bachelor’s degree in accounting from Arkansas Tech University at Russellville in 1983. Thirty-two years later, she still feels no need to look anywhere else for career fulfillment.

The J.B. Hunt family lured James Schnoes away from banking back in 1988, which led to more than 20 years of trucking-related work. In 2013, Johnelle Hunt lured him back with an assignment to help reverse the financial fortunes of One Bank & Trust of Little Rock.

Judy Lawton has worked as a chief financial officer for most of her 34-year career in banking. She recently celebrated her 11th anniversary as CFO and chief operating officer at Bryant’s Heartland Bank, which she helped transform from a $44 million-asset thrift into today’s $244 million-asset lender.

Billye Veteto, 38, celebrated her fourth anniversary as CFO at the Razorback Foundation in October. Her four-year anniversary with her husband, Jeremy, is in a couple of months. None of this balance was particularly by design.

Chief financial officers don’t usually grandstand or seek the limelight, so the idea of honoring them at an awards luncheon might seem unusual. But for the past seven years, Arkansas Business has shined the spotlight on financial leaders in Arkansas with distinct achievements in their field.

Diane Newton knows her way around quite a few college campuses in Arkansas. Prior to UCA, she worked at Henderson State University, Southern Arkansas University and the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. She came back to the Natural State after seven years as vice president for business and administration at Landers University in Greenwood, South Carolina.

Bobby Jones graduated from Henderson State University in 1971, received his MBA from the school, and has served as Henderson's controller, CFO, VP for finance and administration, interim president and even athletic director.

It’s a good thing that Kelsey Bailey, chief financial officer for the Little Rock School District, likes working with money. It’s why he chose accounting. Unfortunately for the LRSD, there’s less of it to work with than there used to be.